Participating in Society
- As a group we decided to investigate whether we could make a
difference, and whether our voices could be heard, on an issue
effecting pupils at the school we attend. The issue specifically was
the current state of our uniform.
- We chose this issue because we were concerned about the fact that so
many young people were complaining, yet nothing was being done in what
is supposed to be a democratic society.
- Through our project, we hoped to actually make a difference, test
whether democracy still exists, and see some improvements in uniform
standards.
- We hoped to go about achieving this aim by sending out a survey, and
then arranging a petition.
b) Describe your role …
In my group the workload was shared equally, however I’d say did most
of the organising. I took part in planning, and carrying out the
investigation step by step.
Student’s Declaration: I declare that I have produced the work
involved without external assistance apart from any which is
acceptable under the scheme of assessment and is recorded.
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Date
Teacher’s Declaration: I declare that the student’s activities have
been kept under regular supervision and that, to the best of my
knowledge, no assistance has been given apart from any which is
acceptable under the scheme of assessment and which has been
identified and recorded.
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Signature
An individual’s role in society can vary with the number themes the characters exhibit. When there are signs of fate, cruelties, weaknesses, and desires for justice and catharsis the role of an individual becomes more complicated. In Antigone, most of those themes are shown thus a single person’s influence or role on society is very small and complicated to attain. However in The Lottery the society has most of the control and there is not many signs of those characteristics so the role of a person is simplified because they are nothing compared to the society combined. Finally, in The Penalty of Death, there are signs of many of the themes but since it is the societies influence against that of an individuals, it is simplified because they have to work together.
James Joyce author of Dubliners, is a book which examines the everyday life of people who live in Dublin. In this intimate portrayal of Dubliners, Joyce writes short stories about the individuals in Irish society. In Dubliners many characters feel the pressure of society, and show their desires to escape. In the stories “Eveline”, “Counterparts” and “The Dead”, the themes of individuals v. society and journey through escape are present. In each story there is a powerful person present that controls a particular person or situation. In Dublin jobs are very important, since they control the social standing in their society. Dublin itself is a major issue to the characters in Dubliners; they wrestle with the ideas of being able to escape.
Aaron Devor’s essay “Becoming Members of Society: Learning the Social Meanings of Gender” describes how despite popular belief, gender and sex are not directly related and how social norms affect individual’s choice of gender. Devor‘s main argument is that gender is not determined by genitalia, but instead by the individual's own choices. Michael Kimmel’s essay “Masculinity as Homophobia” claims that gender equality is a positive thing for males and that social norms force men to act a certain way. Kimmel’s main argument is that men are always having to protect their masculinity in order to prevent themselves from appearing weak. Both authors present compelling arguments for both gender equality and for how social norms influence individuals’ gender choice. However, the two authors approach the same topic in different ways. Kimmel takes a more laid-back approach to the topic by using simple words and a conversational tone that relates to the casual gender sociologist. Devor writes a more sophisticated essay using complex terms and a more formal tone that relates to the serious sociologist that research gender studies.
American literature often examines people and motives. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter, and in Arthur Miller’s dramatic classic, The Crucible, people and motives often depict patterns of Puritans struggling for life during a precarious time.
Men are physically stronger while women are more emotionally aware, people acknowledge the differences between the sexes, but who can say that one is better than the other? They balance each other out. The short essay “ Becoming Members of Society: Learning the Social Meanings of Gender”, by Aaron H. Devor, depicts how gender identity begins at a very young age, Children grow to understand which specific gender grouping they belong to. Society plays a big role in the definitions of masculinity and femininity since children will pick up on the values of the settings around them. Because Masculine and feminine characteristics are usually believed to be opposites of each other, while females were trying to reach equality by showing they can do anything a man does, they gave males the biggest compliment of mimicking. The other essay “ Bros Before Hos: the guy code” by Michael Kimmel, Michael explains the problematic of social constructions of Masculinity and the unconscious behavior men tend to follow. The behavior is called the “Guy Code”, which has been instilled into them by family, peers, and the media from a very young age. The purpose is to relate this code to why young men act and feel
he focus of this paper will be to examine Kate Chopin’s The Awakening chapter ten, specifically paragraphs five to ten. Throughout The Awakening Edna is constantly fighting with the expectations of society and her desire to be a free woman. As a woman, Edna is expected to be the perfect wife and mother, however she longs to embrace and free her creative self. Because of this battle within herself she shows many of the characteristics of depression. The passage mentioned above is very symbolic of Edna’s fight to overcome her mental illness. The thesis of this paper is that Edna’s yearning to swim is a metaphor for her longing to overcome depression, patriarchal expectations and societal constraints. By taking an in-depth look into the author’s word choice, a parallel can be found between learning to swim and the ability to overcome the depression within.
Activities and philosophies that advocate for the connecting of communities with socially sentient beliefs and actions is what have come to be referred to as civic engagement. They are thus individual or collective actions aimed at addressing issues that are deemed to be of public concern. They can be manifested in many ways including; public service, civil activity, service-learning, crusading and advocacy to mention but a few as the list is endless.
Social psychology, as defined by the Microsoft Bookshelf, is the branch of human psychology that deals with the behavior of groups and the influence of social factors on the individual. Social roles are one of the many sub - categories of social psychology. I believe social roles to be the way we, as individuals, act in certain situations; such as home life, educational and economic statue, peer groups, etc. The Prison Simulation by Haney, Banks & Zimbardo is just one of the vast studies in this area. In this study we will see how people take roles in life, and in simulated life situations. Social roles are not fictitious, it is in fact a very real occurrence that many people deal with ever day, whether it be with them selves or with other individuals.
Fashion is one of those things that people can claim they don't care about. They can defend again and again that it doesn't matter what one wears, it's the person who wears it. But in all likelihood they will continue to be judged, as we all are, for the clothes on our body, the shoes on our feet and the hairstyle we are sporting.
Social Institutions Life and its functions are divided and categorized into different systems that define social life. These systems are called social institutions. The main purpose of a social institution is to organize and structure society for the benefit of its people. There are many different types of social institutions, such as, family, religion, education, and peer groups. They were all developed for different areas of life, but ultimately, work together to create social order within a society.
Community engagement is the active participation of local residents and community groups in the decisions that affect their lives (Herefordshire Council, 2013). Therefore, community engagement should be about engaging in open communication to ensure the council understands the needs of the local community.
Before taking this class, my understanding between each individual and the whole society is that every individuals as the gear are connected together to become a society like a machine. That is, human beings build the society. However, the class gave me bigger view of the relationship between the people and the society. Discussing about the relationship between me and the broader social world is based on how all human beings and the broader social world effect together. Thus, I am going to show my understanding from the class and reading about the interaction between each individual and the whole society.
The question, “ What makes a good society” is never the same for every individual that comes across trying to answer this sociological question. What may work in one society, may not work in another. But I am guessing you already new that. Depending on the type of culture, location and era; a good society can be anything. If you were to have been raised in the western side of the world, your good society is one of a democracy. Where the people have power and we have checks and balances in our government. But what if you were raised in the east, were people live in a socialist-communistic society. Where the government has the power and people are treated equally. Who is to say which type of society is “good”?
Civil society is both a way of describing aspects of modern society and an aspiration, an ideal of what a good society should be like. It has recently been revived to emphasize the capacity of societies to organize themselves through the active cooperation of their members. Unfortunately up to today we still don't have a universally recognised definition and the whole concept is still the core of a intense academic debate. That is why it seemed appropriate, for the purpouse of this paper, to analyse the historical evolution of the concept throughout the centuries.
The Role of Community in Society Communities are an essential part of our society, because we all depend and interact with each other. Communities are groups of people that help an individual to learn and develop new ideas. A society is where people’s relations with each other are direct and personal and where a complex web of ties link people in mutual bonds of emotion and obligation. The idea of community has provided a model to contrast to the emergence of more modern less personal societies where cultural, economic and technological transformations have uprooted tradition and where complexity has created a less personal and more rationalized and goal directed social life.